CHAPTER 205

AN ACT to amend Chapter 168 of the Acts of Assembly of 1874-

75, approved March 11, 1875, as amended, which provided

a charter for the city of Petersburg, by adding a section

numbered 2-c in Chapter IV relating to fixing salaries of
certain officers of the city.

[ H 328 ]

Approved March 14, 1950

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That Chapter 163 of the Acts of Assembly of 1874-75, ap-
proved March 11, 1875, as amended, be amended by adding a
section numbered 2-c in Chapter IV as follows:

§ 2-c. Notwithstanding the provisions of §§ 15-448 to
15-454, both inclusive, of the Code of 1950, the salaries of all
councilmen in the city of Petersburg, including the salary of the
mayor, shall be fixed, as provided herein, by a commission of
five resident taxpayers, who shall also be qualified citizens of
the said city, and who shall be appointed by the circuit court of
the said city, or the judge thereof in vacation, having jurisdic-
tion in the said city, and who shall serve without compensation.
The said commissioners shall be so appointed, upon application
of the mayor to the said court or the judge thereof, as soon as
practical after any general election for members of the council,
and the salaries so fixed shall become effective as of the date on
which members elected at such general election shall take office,
but the salaries so fixed shall be applicable with respect to all
members of the council, including the mayor, irrespective of
the date of their taking office, it being intended that the salaries
of all members of the council (with the exception of that of the
mayor in the event his salary shall be fixed at a greater amount
than that of other members of the council) shall at all times be
equal and uniform. The compensation so fixed shall be effective
until the expiration of the terms of members of the council next
expiring. If the said salaries shall not have been fixed on or
prior to the date as of which the same shall become effective, as
herein provided, all past-due salaries shall be paid to members
of the council at the rate fixed as herein provided.

The said commissioners shall be notified by the clerk of the
said court of their appointment, and, upon being so notified, shall,
as soon as practicable, meet, and fix said salaries, and make due
written report of their action to the said clerk of the court. The
report so made shall be in the office of the said clerk for thirty
days, during which time any citizen or taxpayer of the said
city may file written exceptions to the same. If no exceptions te
the said report are made, then at the expiration of the said thirty
days the said clerk shall transmit the said report to the city
council, which report shall be entered in full on the records of
the council and shall have the force and effect of an ordinance
duly adopted in the mode prescribed by law.

If any citizen or taxpayer file exceptions to the said report
within the thirty-day period above provided for, the matter
shall be immediately docketed by the clerk for hearing as a
privileged case as soon as the court may be able to hear the
same, after the lapse of the said thirty days from the making of
the said report. The judge of such court shall have entire con-
trol of the matter, and may either reject, modify or confirm the
said report. Any citizen or taxpayer of the city may make him-
self a party to the hearing before the court, and may present
such evidence as may be pertinent. If the report be rejected by
the court, new commissioners shall be appointed immediately,
and the same procedure followed as set forth in the first instance.

Upon the final determination of the matter such order as
the court may enter shall be certified to the council, spread upon
its records, and have the force and effect of an ordinance duly
adopted as prescribed by law.

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